


The Games Are On

by AoifeMoran



Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms, Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Olympics, Athletes, F/F, Gen, M/M, Olympics, Olympics AU, Parentlock
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-13
Updated: 2014-02-13
Packaged: 2018-01-12 04:31:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1181940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AoifeMoran/pseuds/AoifeMoran
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The year is 2022. The location is Oslo, Norway. The XXIV Winter Olympics are under way, and Hamish Watson-Holmes is poised to make a brilliant comeback after a disastrous fall four years earlier. This is the news transcript from Greg Lestrade's coverage of that night's events on his show, "My Division."</p><p>Or, the AU where everyone is either an athlete or a reporter, John Watson and Sebastian Moran are frenemies, and somehow, a skiier is best friends with a figure skating prodigy. Look, don't even ask.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Games Are On

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Just, slightly gayer. (Although let's face it, the Olympics have always been terribly gay.)
> 
> I haven't skated competitively since I was 12 and didn't have two terribly injured kneecaps, so I apologize if my figure-skating knowledge isn't entirely up to date. That said, I've tried to do my research, though the ISU manual is a terribly dry read, you've been warned. Also, not British, so drop me a line if there's anything I probably ought to fix.

GL: And over on the slopes, Alex Moran-Moriarty has just become the first Englishman to take home the gold in slopestyle skiing, although to be entirely accurate, this phenomenal young man is Irish by birth. Before he went on to rack up an impressive 99.75 points, we had a chance to speak to this camera-shy Olympian, who now boasts a total of 4 medals - 1 gold, 2 silver, and a bronze to round out the collection. Here's Molly Hooper with more.

MH: So, um, Alex, if I may call you that, this is your third appearance at the Olympics, and your third shot at the gold in slopestyle skiing. What do you plan on doing if you win?

AMM: I think you mean "when" I win, since I am entirely confident that I'm better than the rest of the competition. As to my plans after I win… I don’t know if I should tell you, honestly, since all it’s going to do is kick up a huge fuss in the media…

MH: Is it something connected to your mysterious significant other, then? The internet’s been dying to know, as I'm sure you’re aware…

AMM: Yeah. Ah, what the hell, I'll tell you. I'm going to propose.

MH: Well there you have it, Greg. Alex has no doubts that this medal's got his name on it, which is as it should be.

GL: And indeed, the way the final played out, it was clear that Moran-Moriarty's confidence was not misplaced. All that remains to be seen, now, is to whom he intends to propose, although it’s entirely possible that we won’t find out – he is notoriously secretive about his private life.  
Meanwhile, over in the Ice Palace, the second group of skaters is getting warmed up and ready for the free skate portion of the competition. May I remind our viewers that Hamish Holmes-Watson, the young skater with an impressive pedigree, is currently in second place after the short programme, two tenths of a point behind veteran Canadian Olympian Patrick Chan. Here are Sally Donovan, Philip Anderson and former British pairs skater Kate Norton-Adler with more.

SD: Hamish Holmes-Watson, son and student of Sherlock Holmes, himself a legendary pairs skater, is back for his second Olympics, and this time, he intends to win. You may recall the devastating injury four years ago that left him unable to complete his short programme, a torn muscle that required four surgeries and two years to correct.

KNA: There was a lot of concern in the figure-skating community that his career would consequently be cut short, but Hamish managed to lay those rumours to rest these past two years, with several spectacular performances, including a second World Cup win, his first after the hiatus enforced by the injury. And then, to cap it all off, two days ago, Hamish went on with the same short programme he had skated back in PyeongChang, intent on completing what he started, and did he ever!

PA: For those of our viewers who might have missed that performance, here are some of the highlights from that programme, titled "The Great Game" and set to Back's Partita No. 1 for solo violin. You're looking at the footage from two nights ago, now. The atmosphere in the Ice Palace as he went in for that opening jump combination – triple flip, double toe - was incredibly tense, fans worried that Hamish wouldn't be able to land the flip, but he delivered, and how!

KNA: And then he went on to that beautiful spin – he’s one of the only male figure skaters to be able to do a Biellmann Spin, by the way, since most male skaters aren't flexible enough to hold the position. Some of the more famous exceptions are Russian legend Evgeni Plushenko, and Japanese star Yuzuru Hanyu, so Hamish is in good company there. And, uh, Sally, correct me if I'm wrong, but you could just about hear the audience hold their breaths as Hamish went in for the second quad in his short programme.

SD: No, you are absolutely correct. You could hear a pin drop as Hamish went in for the quadruple Axel, which was the disastrous jump four years ago. But again, he made it look incredibly simple, and practically breezed through the rest of his programme. Stumbled slightly coming out of a triple Lutz later, which cost him the points he needed to overtake Brown in the short, but there is no doubt that Hamish is going to finish tonight on that podium! The only question is which spot?

PA: Sally, I completely agree with you, especially if he skates today the way he did two days ago. He's the last skater tonight, preceded by Japanese skater Shoma Uno, who is currently waiting for his score. This is his second Olympics – he made his Olympic debut in PyeongChang, just as Hamish did, though obviously he’s had a bit of a better go of it. And there’s his score, a 173.28, for a combined score of 268.61, which is his new personal best, and it puts him into third, ahead of American skater Jason Brown. Meanwhile, Canadian Patrick Chan is currently in first place, with Russian Maxim Kovtun in second.

KNA: Hamish will need a minimum of 193.41 points to take first place tonight. He'll need to skate cleanly tonight, since that’s cutting quite close to the base scores for his routine, but if he skates tonight like he did in the short, he ought to be fine. The cameras are showing us his coaches and the rest of the British figure skaters, and they look fairly confident about Hamish’s skating tonight, so it doesn't seem like there’s any reason to worry.

SD: Joining them in the box are Duchess Kate and Prince George, waving to the cameras, here to watch British history hopefully be made. They don’t have very long to wait, as Hamish is skating onto the centre of the ice, with a wide smile instead of the icily neutral expression he used to sport before performances. He had a very technical approach, before his last Olympics, but since he's started training with Ilia Averbukh, he has improved his artistic elements drastically.

KNA: That’s putting it mildly, I would say. It looks like he's taking his cues from one of his idols, Johnny Weir, tonight, choosing to skate to a medley of Lady Gaga songs arranged for a string quartet. This is a brand new programme, being debuted at these Games, and it seems like Hamish is going to show us his wilder, more flamboyant side tonight, if that impressive glittering eye liner is anything to go by. Personally, I'm hoping he puts a make-up tutorial up on YouTube after tonight.

PA: I'm sure you’re not the only one, Kate. But you’re absolutely right, it’s difficult to believe that this excited young man is the cold, calculating teenager we saw four years ago, although perhaps it is all for the better. And here's his opening jump combination, a quadruple Lutz, triple toe, and he nails it. That landing is absolutely flawless, nice speed throughout. Judges are reviewing the first Lutz, making sure there were four full rotations there.

SD: The jump _is_ valid, and meanwhile, Hamish is demonstrating his absolute mastery of spins. He’s probably the most flexible male skater here tonight - I don't think I've seen spins like these since Plushenko, in Sochi, giving the performance of his life. He’s gone through a number of different positions, including a camel spin, both a horizontal and a traditional Biellmann spin, and a layback. It’s just absolutely stunning, really.

KNA: There is no doubt in my mind that Hamish is going to take first place tonight, given the way he's been skating tonight. No hint of nerves at all, just the grin and the amazing technique and artistry he's been carrying through the programme tonight. Beautiful footwork sequence, now, and the audience knows it, and Hamish is on to a triple Salchow, double toe loop, where it looks like he might have stumbled on the landing with the Salchow, but he’s managed to stay upright, and the jump wasn't under-rotated, so the deduction, if there is one, won’t be too harsh.

SD: And Kate, you mentioned that footwork sequence, and you can just see how much his artistry has improved in the past two years since he's gotten back in skates, and the audience really loves it, cheering him on. Now another, shorter footwork sequence, and a beautiful butterfly spin entry into a combination spin, changes the foot between the camel and the back sit spin, which adds a higher degree of difficulty to the combination. We've passed the halfway mark, now, so any jumps he does will have an extra ten percent of the point value added.

KNA: Right. This is the portion where you see skaters do more jumps, since of course, the point value now becomes higher, as there’s more difficulty when your legs are more fatigued. Attempting a quadruple jump so late, though, that’s almost unprecedented, but here’s Hamish with the most difficult jump in the programme, a quadruple Axel, judges reviewing again, and yes, it is a quadruple Axel, there were four and a half complete revolutions there.

PA: And here’s his choreographic sequence, one of the last required elements of this routine, leading directly into that final corkscrew spin, and Hamish ends with a triumphant grin on his face, because it’s quite clear to him, and to anyone with any passing knowledge of figure skating that he skated beautifully, and there’s a spot on that podium marked off for him.

KNA: Getting off the ice, he’s greeted by his coaches and parents, and there’s his father, John Watson, holding a Thermos full of tea. Both he and Sherlock Holmes are sporting a proud grin, which, I must say, is an uncharacteristic look for Sherlock Holmes, but I suppose he’s earned the right to be proud of Hamish, on this of all nights.

SD: We've got the heir to the throne here, and tea, and could this scene possibly get any more British? The answer is yes, but only when the anthem is played. Hamish is sitting down to wait for his scores now, with his family and friends all around him. There's his sister Victoria, who’s following in her uncle’s tradition and representing Britain in curling. Only time will tell if she will also take up his mantle as IOC president.

KNA: Indeed, the Holmes-Watson clan’s contributions to British sport are practically legendary by now. They've got about 6 medals between them, at the moment, though Hamish and Victoria are sure to raise that total in this next week and a half.

SD: Also with them, waiting for Hamish’s scores, is Alex Moran-Moriarty, the snowboarding medallist. The two are long-time friends, both training in Sussex. They met when Hamish was 9 years old, and Alex was 12. You might wonder how a figure-skater and a skier became fast friends; the answer is, Hamish also skis, likely due to John's influence, as he is, of course, a two-time biathlon medallist. Alex was the first to tweet about Hamish’s state after the fall during his last Olympic appearance; Hamish persistently shoots down rumours about whichever starlet Alex has been linked to this week.

KNA: It’s an unlikely friendship, given the history between the two families. John Watson's rivalry with Sebastian Moran is legendary, although the two prefer the term "frenemies," and Holmes and Moriarty have never been on the best of terms; relations between the two skaters have been icy at best, if you will pardon the pun.

SD: The announcement of the scores, now, and by god, he's done it, Hamish has won the gold with an amazing 197.02, a personal best for Hamish, giving him a record-breaking 295.32! John and Hamish going wild there, Sherlock Holmes looking slightly smug, and hang on, what's this? Alex Moran-Moriarty has gotten down on one knee in front of Hamish! What timing! What a day for the two of them - two gold medals, and on screen now is Hamish Holmes-Watson shouting "yes!" at his new fiancé, Alex Moran-Moriarty.

KNA: I wish them luck figuring out how to hyphenate that one, but the look of pure joy on both their faces is absolutely breathtaking. This is going to be a photograph for the ages. Probably going to be trending on the internet within minutes, if it isn't already. Here's Molly Hooper with Hamish Watson-Holmes now.

MH: So, Hamish, you've just won your first Olympic gold, marking an impressive, practically legendary comeback, and as if that weren't enough to make this a night to remember for you, Alex Moran-Moriarty, considered for a long time to be Britain's second-most eligible bachelor after yourself, has just proposed to you. How are you feeling right about now? I know I'm kind of amazed, personally…

HWH: Honestly? Euphoric. I'm not actually entirely sure I'm awake. I'm probably going to be walking around asking people to pinch me, just to make sure this happened.

MH: I can assure you, Hamish, you’re not dreaming. Your dreams are, in fact, reality now. Do you have any advice for beginning skaters on how they can make their own Olympic dreams come true?

HWH: Practice. Practice makes perfect, as trite as it sounds. But it's also important to remember that there are other things besides your sport, and that you have more than just your sport to live for. So many of the skaters who struggle to make it to this level lose sight of the reasons why they started in the first place; hold on to the love you brought to the sport, the love you have for the sport. Don't let it become a chore; do it because you really want to be here, not just for your family and your fans, but for your own sake.

MH: Thank you, Hamish, for those sincere words of advice. Congratulations on your engagement, and your medal. Will we be seeing you in four years in Boston?

HWH: Absolutely!

SD: And there you have it, Hamish Watson-Holmes having the night of his life, and promising to come back in four years' time, undoubtedly soaring to new heights.  
Back to you, Greg.

GL: What a night at the Ice Palace here in Oslo, what a night! A stunning performance by Hamish Watson-Holmes, and an even more surprising proposal by skier Alex Moran-Moriarty. It does put an end to the speculation about his cryptic comments earlier today, however. We wish the both of them the best of luck, especially Alex, who will be skiing in the half-pipe tomorrow evening, hoping to add another medal to his collection. That's all for tonight, although our coverage of the Olympics returns tomorrow evening after the news. I'm Greg Lestrade, and the 2022 Oslo Olympics are _definitely_ my division!


End file.
